Trying To Forget
When Harry finally left, the attack plan had been totally modified. Originally, it would have been a slaughter ground, with a head on charge upon the Death Eater force. Now the losses were smaller, and the effect much greater.
Only the Light had the power of flight so far. That was ancient magic kept preserved in the hidden library of the Hogwarts Headmaster (or Mistress, of course). Harry and Nevra worked together to devise a cunning solution.
First, the attack would come from the air. Owls could carry exploding grenades - which they would drop in a set pattern. However, once dropped they would do nothing - until Harry would say the 'magic words', per se, and they would all explode in unison.
After the force was considerably ravaged, the attack would move on to real people. Broom sticks and magic carpets (legalized by Arthur Weasley 2 years ago) would both be used to get witches and wizards in the air. After that, the attack would come from below - but that was easy to fix.
Hogwarts, long ago, used to play games in the Great Hall. Because of the multitude of students - two games would be played at once. So the Four had created a magical barrier in mid-air that served as a floor for the upper half and a ceiling for the lower half of the Hall. Now, they could use the barrier, because it was impermeable. The shots any Death Eater fired would reflect back at their own people once it bounced off the barrier "ceiling."
Dumbledore had found a way to make the barrier work only one-way…from the lower half (Death Eaters) to the upper half (Light Side). So, the Light could destroy the Dark Force without ever incurring a casualty. It was brilliant!
The students would still be killed, because there was not room for all of them in the safe places of the castle - the Headmaster's office and the kitchens. The rest of them would stay in the Ravenclaw Dormitory (because Ravenclaw was the only House that had no student Death Eaters according to Ginevra - leader of student Death Eaters). There, they would be vulnerable. But at least it would not be a straight out slaughter as children got caught in the crossfire.
There was the attack plan. Dumbledore had given her the Sorting Hat at last. She would be Summoned to the Dark Lord soon with her prize. Her Initiation was imminent - she would be an even more valued informer when she joined the upper ranks of the Dark Side. She would be the youngest Death Eater ever to attain such a rank.
She needed to keep her position as leader of the student Death Eaters - Draco had lost it when he had become Heir. But becoming Heir was a very different thing than becoming a member of the Inner Circle. Perhaps…hopefully, she would be able to keep her spot. She needed to keep tabs on all Hogwarts Death Eaters at the time of attack. Make sure they did not find a way to foil the attack plan.
The scar (from the Binding) burned for an instant and she could see the thin line turned black against the iridescent green of the Dark Mark. She was being called. Probably by Blaise, considering her spat with Draco. She really did not think she could deal with Draco right now. Better that she avoid him.
She was called, and she must go. But she would be careful to avoid his eyes. It was his eyes that made her feel torn inside. Like when she denied her love, she denied him. And his eyes made her imagine that "he" could really feel - that he felt for her. She shoved away the feelings roughly as she readied herself for the jolt that came when you return to your partners in a Binding Spell.
The things the mind imagines when desperate for someone's love. But Draco Malfoy was not capable of love. Not now, and perhaps not ever. She would have to remember that. No matter how tortured his eyes looked, no matter how she felt within his arms. Draco Malfoy did not love her, and probably never would. She pushed the regret to a tiny corner in her mind and tried to forget.
What she didn't know then was that Draco Malfoy would never let her forget. Ever.
Opinions Of An Empath
Nevra appeared in front of Blaise. She breathed a sigh of relief. Draco was nowhere to be seen. But Blaise appeared upset.
"I need to talk to you. Something's wrong."
"What are you talking about, Blaise?"
"I'm an Empath. I feel others' emotions especially when I am close to them myself. That means I read you and Draco the best of all."
"Your point is…"
"Something happened after I left that cottage. Both of you are struggling with new emotions. And the Trio is divided. What is going on with you two?"
She sighed. "You warned me not to fall in love with him." He nodded impatiently, searching her face. "I already have. But since I can't afford to love him…I, well, I pushed him away. Told him I wouldn't let myself love him. Because his Darkness would swallow me."
He shook his head slightly. "It will. But something worse will happen if you deny it. You know, I don't think he knows it himself yet, but you need to be told. He cares about you. Maybe not quite love yet, but definitely the closest Draco's ever gotten to the feeling in his entire life. I used to think Draco wasn't capable of love. That his circumstances - growing up under the shadow of the Dark Side and the pressures of his father - had left him so numb to emotion that he couldn't love. But I am beginning to rethink that…Nevra, honest to Merlin, you have the greatest chance to make him human that anyone has ever had. To make him feel…break past the barriers, the shields he holds."
"Blaise…"
"No, listen, Nevra. He lets down his exterior guard in front of me and Pansy, and his mom. Bu the interior ones - the guards on his thoughts - those he never ever ever lets down. No one ever knows what he's considering, what he's thinking about, until a plan is fully formed in his head. Until the risks and benefits of speaking have been calculated. Until he's sure of everything."
"That's the only way he would have survived at the top of the Dark Side for so long. You know the Heir must be like that, Blaise."
"I know, but I don't agree. All this subterfuge has left very little feeling in Draco. I doubt he remembers what it means to laugh anymore. As the subject to the Heir to the Dark Lord" I know these changes are for the better. But as the friend to Draco Malfoy…it's killing him inside."
"So I am supposed to sacrifice myself to save Mr. Emotionless?" Nevra stated poisonously.
Blaise's face grew wiser than his years. (On anyone but him, it would have been smug) "Denying love is a dangerous thing to all involved. Especially the love of your magnitude. I have no idea when or why, but the ties of love connecting you two are stronger than any other couple I have seen, stronger than the ties of the Innocuroso Binding of the Trio. Denying those ties is already splitting apart the Trio…it will eventually lead you both to desperate measures to find a way back to Happiness. Breaking the ties…well, it probably would kill you both."
"He won't let me forget about him, will he?"
"It's not just him, Nevra. You confuse him and throw him off balance. Careful you two figure each other out before this confusion of emotion gets you both killed. You know how mistakes can come back to haunt you in the Dark Side.
A/N - I think that JKR said that Neville/Luna will never happen. There is a brief mention of Neville/Luna in this chapter. I know what JKR says, and that can happen in her books. Her genius is acknowledged. However in this story, my imagination creates the rules. Enjoy! - Kumy
The Reaction
She turned to leave, and Blaise grabbed her arm, stopped her. His eyes were glazed over and the words came out in a rush. "Draco has been lying to you…or at least not telling you. He killed Bill and Fleur Weasley over a year ago on their two year wedding anniversary. He tortured them into giving information about the whereabouts of Neville Longbottom and Luna Lovegood as well. The Dark Lord wanted Longbottom dead because he was the second boy that could have been involved in the prophecy. Luna was carrying his child out of wedlock at the time. Draco killed them both a week later when he found them in the Forbidden Forest looking for a wild 'gobbledygook', whose sightings had just been published in the Quibbler."
Blaise's eyes refocused suddenly and he released his grip on her arm. "Weren't you leaving, Nevra?"
She looked at him hard. "Did you conduct the Word of Power spell to see if Elenia Parkinson was lying?"
He nodded. "Oh, yeah. That's what I forgot to tell you about. Since we are bound with the Innocuroso Binding, any one of us can wield the Power of the Trio. So, I did it last night. Draco knows already. She was telling the truth. We have a deserter in hand. By the way, we need to meet after you and Draco figure your…disagreement…out. To see what we are going to do with Elenia Parkinson."
She smiled grimly. "The Reaction came already, Blaise. You just told me how my brother and his wife, my best friend and her husband died…and you said Draco might be able to love. How? When he could kill two pregnant women and two good men in cold blood? Without evidence of a threat…just speculation. Killed them…Blaise, that means the thousand tears I cried for them all, I can lay at the feet of a man you say loves me. If he can hurt someone he loves like this, I dread to get on his bad side!" She laughed, her laughter bordering on the edge of tears.
Blaise winced. "Well, to state the obvious, Draco didn't love you then. We are lucky that the Reaction came with the Trio…or maybe not. This could destroy us."
Her eyes were pure fire. "God, you know, I still can't put the feeling of his arms wrapped around me out of my head. He killed people I love, and I can't forget one minute of memories." She reached out blindly for comfort, for something to hold on to.
Blaise sighed and stroked her hair as she sobbed on his shoulder. "That's love for you, Nevra. It hurts, but eventually, believe it or not, it's worth it."
She gently removed herself from his embrace. "I think that this Binding weakened me more than it helped." She joked weakly. "I haven't cried this much in years."
He looked at her seriously. "It did in a way. It opened your mind to me and Draco…so I guess it's normal to feel a bit more emotional."
"So why aren't you both breaking down constantly?"
"Because you have been holding emotion inside since you came to the Dark Side. Draco and I have shown it with each other and Pansy. We have less emotion pent up inside us to explode out like yours does. It will get better though."
She sighed. "People seem to be saying that a lot to me these days. I just hope it can't get any worse."
She never should have said that. Because as always, things could get worse. And they did.